Philosophy and Religion

• First year: the department recommends that anyone planning to major in philosophy and religious studies take PHIL 101 (Critical Thinking) sometime during their first year. This is a foundational course in our department, and it helps students to both understand arguments and to form their own arguments.
  • PHIL102 no longer exists. If you are working from an older catalog (before fall 2012) that requires this course, you can take PHIL 205 to replace it. However, most students have also needed an upper-level argument course because they have used PHIL 205 to fulfill an area of inquiry, so, PHIL205 + upper level argument course.
• First/second year: the department recommends that anyone planning to major in philosophy and religious studies take PHIL 205 (Anatomy of Thought) sometime during their second semester or second year. This is a formal reasoning course that will give students the tools they need to succeed as majors.
• First/second year: the department recommends philosophy BA students take PHIL 201-202 (ancient and modern); for pre-seminary students to take at least one of the Visions courses (RSTD 220, 232, 265 or 270) and a scriptures course (RSTD 361-262 or 366); and for comparative students to take RSTD 211-212 (Religions of the East and West).
• Third year/fourth year: complete requirements listed below in specified degree/concentration area. Note that those concentrating in pre-seminary studies need to set time aside to complete RSTD 491 (internship); talk with Dr. Redick about this. All majors must also take PHIL 451 (a special topics course) BEFORE they can take PHIL 490 (senior seminar). This means you need to plan your schedule accordingly. If you are a double major, we do not recommend taking both of your senior seminar courses in the same semester.

The Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy

• PHIL 101, 205, 451, 490W
• PHIL 201, 202
• Select one (three credits) Ethics/Value Analysis: PHIL 304, 315, 319, 337, 376 or 384
• Select one (three credits) Epistemology/Metaphysics: PHIL 305, 317, 320 or 308
• Select four (12 credits) 300-400 level courses in PHIL and/or RSTD
• Submit a portfolio of all written work completed in all philosophy and religious studies courses taken at CNU
• Successfully complete the Philosophy and Religion departmental comprehensive examination

The Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy - Pre-seminary studies concentration

• PHIL 101, 205, 451, 490W
• RSTD 361, 362, 491
• Select one (three credits) Visions course: RSTD 220, 232, 260, 265, or 270
• Select one (three credits) Historical Studies: RSTD 319, 335, 350; PHIL 317, 348 or 349
• Select one (three credits) Value Analysis: RSTD 312, 315, 326W, 337, 338; PHIL 304, 306, 308, 315, 319, 337, 376
• Select one (three credits) Comparative Studies: RSTD 236, 310, 318, 330, 340 or 345
• Select two (six credits) courses in PHIL and/or RSTD;
• Submit a portfolio of all written work completed in philosophy and religious studies courses taken at CNU
• Successfully complete the Philosophy and Religious studies departmental comprehensive exam.

The Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy - Religious studies concentration

• PHIL 101, 205, 451, 490W
• RSTD 211, 212
• Select three (nine credits) Comparative and Historical Studies: RSTD 220, 232, 260, 256, 270, 318, 319, 330, 335, 340 or 350
• Select three (nine credits) courses in PHIL and/or RSTD, two at the 300-400 level
• Submit a portfolio of all written work completed in all written philosophy and religious studies courses taken at CNU
• Successfully complete the Philosophy and Religion departmental comprehensive exam

Minor in Philosophy of Law - 18 credits

1. PHIL 205, PHIL 321W, PHIL 425
2. POLS 316
3. Select one: PHIL 337 or RSTD 321
4. Select one: AMST 350, POLS 240, or PHIL 304

Minor in Philosophy and Religious Studies - 18 credits

The minor requires PHIL 101 or PHIL 205 and a minimum of 15 credits above the 100-level in PHIL/RSTD courses. At least two of the PHIL/RSTD courses must be taken at the 300-400 level.

Interdisciplinary Minors

Interdisciplinary minors with which our department cooperates: American studies minor, the linguistics minor, the women and gender studies minor, film studies, and the Asian studies minor.

The senior seminar class is the capstone course for philosophy and religion majors. The class meets in regular class sessions to support your work on an argument paper that you will defend at the end of the semester. You will work with a committee of advisers on this paper throughout the semester to revise it to the standards of a publication-worthy product. In addition to the thesis project, this class is the place through which you will submit your PHIL/RSTD portfolio, and you will take your comprehensive exams.

• Thesis Committee: You will choose a “chair,” of your advising committee, who should be a specialist in the topic of your paper. In addition, you need two other faculty members on your committee. Choose faculty members whose research background will help you to support your argument or help you understand the opposition to your argument. This committee will be the people to whom you defend your paper at the end of the semester. They will have read the different stages of your paper and (because of this) they will understand the strengths and weaknesses of your position.
• Defense: During the last week of class, you will be asked to orally defend your argument in a formal presentation for the members of your committee. You will have submitted the final paper to them about a week before this, so they will have read the final paper before your defense. Your actual presentation may be about 20 minutes, but the defense lasts from 45 minutes to an hour. At that time you will earn a pass, pass with distinction or fail. These advisers will also each give the instructor a letter grade for your paper and the instructor will average these grades together (with the instructor’s grade) for your final paper grade. You will not pass this course if you do not pass the defense or the comprehensive exam. The criteria the faculty advisers use at the senior paper defense are: relevance and importance of topic, quality of sources and references, strength of arguments and counter arguments, clarity, professional style, coherence, consistency, completeness, and quality of oral presentation.
• Portfolio: Please begin collecting an electronic sample of papers that you have written in philosophy and religious studies courses at Christopher Newport. We will create an electronic folder on Scholar with your name where you will be able to store your portfolio.
• Poster Session: During week eight or nine of the Senior Seminar course, you will create a poster of your argument to visually depict how your argument works. This is basically a flow chart of your argument. During the poster session, you will be showing the class, the professors from the department, and anyone else who shows up (other majors/minors) how your argument works. This is a chance for you to see the strengths and weaknesses of your argument from a variety of viewpoints.
• Comprehensive Exam: During our exam period, you will take the departmental exam. You can prepare for this by going to the comprehensive exam page on the department’s website. You will be responsible for a question in four of these five areas: critical thinking, global philosophy, religious studies, values studies/moral theory and Western philosophy.
• Please choose three questions in each of the four areas to study ahead of time.
  • You will have to tell the instructor which four areas you have chosen for your comprehensive exams, and in those four/five areas, which three questions you have prepared.
  • You will be studying 12 questions in preparation for those four. So, you will have a total of four essay questions for your final exam.
  • The instructor will choose the final questions for you for the final comprehensive exam from the questions you have selected.

• CT1: State and illustrate the Socratic Method of questioning, explaining why it is of such importance to Socrates. Give an example from one of the dialogues of an exchange during which the Socratic method is used.
• CT2: How does scientific reasoning differ from reasoning in the humanities? Give examples of each.
• CT3: What are some of the arguments for and against the claim that a machine can be constructed that has the capability of consciousness and thought?
• CT4: What are some prominent theories concerning the relationship between language and the world?
• CT5: Explain the distinction between syntax and semantics and how Searle uses this distinction to argue against strong AI.
• CT6: Explain the functionalist theory of mind using the two versions of the Turing Test as an illustration.
• CT7: Explain Frank Jackson's knowledge argument from "What Mary Doesn't Know". Does his argument successfully disprove physicalism? Argue for your answer.
• CT8: Explain the “problem of induction” in philosophy of science. What does Karl Popper propose as an alternative? Does his alternative work? Why or why not?
• CT9: Compare and contrast at least two proposed criteria of demarcation between science and non-science.
• CT10: What is a ‘paradigm’ according to Thomas Kuhn? Give an example of a paradigm shift. In your answer, be sure to explain the terms ‘incommensurable’ and ‘theory-ladenness of observation.’
• CT11: Explain coherence theory of justification and both strong and moderate foundationalism. Identify and explain at least one criticism of each theory.
• CT12: What are the defining characteristics of a Gettier Problem? Using these criteria, invent your own example of a Gettier problem.
• CT13: G. E. Moore offers this proof for the existence of the external world: 1. Here is a hand. 2. If there is a hand here, then there is an external world. 3. Therefore there is an external world. Identify a philosopher who finds this proof to be unsatisfying, and explain his/her objections. Alternatively, you may give your own objections.
• CT14: Explain the “brain in a vat” argument for skepticism, and explain at least one argument against it.
• CT15: What is Pascal’s Wager? Identify and explain at least two critiques of it.
• CT16: How would you distinguish an argument from an explanation? Give an example and make an argument for the distinction between the two.
• CT17: Why might one use an analogical argument? Give an example of an analogical argument and explain why it might be a persuasive tool in an argument.
• CT18: What is the difference between a statistical and a causal argument? Which type of argument would one use to argue why a floodwall collapsed during a hurricane? Explain.
• CT19: Construct a moral argument using one of the ethical models (consequentialist, deontic, or aretaic). Explain why your argument fits that model, rather than the other two.

• GP1: What criticisms of Confucianism were made by the early philosophers of ancient China such as Chuang Tzu, Lao Tzu, Mo Tzu, and Hsun Tzu?
• GP2: What themes in the Vedas and Upanishads of ancient India dominated the thinking of the later schools of Hindu thought?
• GP3: What are the differences between the Confucian concept of governmental rule and those of Plato and Aristotle?
• GP4: What are some differences between concepts of nature found in Confucianism, Taoism, and the Yin Yang School, and the Pre-Socratics, Plato, and Aristotle?
• GP5: What are the major differences between Buddhism and Hinduism in ancient India?
• GP6: What were the major transformations of Buddhism as it moved out of India into East Asia?
• GP7: What similarities are found in the concept, or lack of it, of the atman in the traditions of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism?
• GP8: Describe the doctrinal differences between Mahayana and Theravada Buddhism with reference to the role of the Arhat and the Bodhisattva.
• GP9: Explain the technique and purpose of the Hindu practice of Yoga.
• GP10: Discuss both Buddhism and Confucianism as a response to human suffering and conflict.
• GP11: Compare the importance of the self or ego for Eastern and Western philosophy.
• GP12: For Confucianism, are human beings essentially good or evil? In either case, how does one act well?
• GP13: Compare the Islamic doctrine of Jihad with the "Just War" theory. How are they similar? How are they different?
• GP14: In Indian society, was the Buddha a liberal, a conservative, or a radical? Give examples to support your answer.
• GP15: The basic nature of human beings has been one of the great topics of discussion throughout the history of China. Is human nature good or bad or somewhere in between? What were the Chinese views on this matter? Discuss.
• GP16: How does the Bhagavad-Gita present and answer the problem of war? What is your critique of its answer? How may its answer be applicable to peoples of other cultures and other religions?
• GP17: How do Confucianism and Buddhism differ in what they contribute to Japanese culture?
• GP18: What are the similarities and difference between Pure Land Buddhism and Zen Buddhism?
• GP19: How does the notion of Kami make a statement about the relation between humanity and the universe?
• GP20: In what ways is esoteric Buddhism comparable to the indigenous religions of Japan?
• GP21: How is surrender (Shinjin) understood as a process that brings spiritual enlightenment.
• GP22: How does the theory of upaya (expedient means) affect our understanding of Japanese philosophy. What are some of the most important elements of the allegory of the burning house from the Lotus Sutra?
• GP23: What is the nature of Dukkha (suffering, stress, etc.) and how according to the Four Noble Truths can it be overcome.
• GP24: Analyze some of the Haikus of Basho and show how they illustrate important concepts in Japanese Philosophy.
• GP25: What is the difference between the poem of Hui Neng and the poem of Shen Hsiu, as far as the nature of meditation is concerned, that the Fifth Patriarch would give the insignia of his office to Hui Neng.
• GP26: Why is the gateless barrier of Zen Buddhism gateless?

• RS1: The world’s religious traditions conceive of ultimacy in diverse ways. Select three religious movements and in a concise sentence for each tradition, define its view of ultimacy. Say whether you think these diverse conceptions can be harmonized with each other or not.
• RS2: Select three religious traditions that make use of scripture and briefly describe what makes these scriptures sacred for these traditions. For instance, are these writings sacred because they are revealed or because they are the record of the founder’s teaching?
• RS3: Describe a Mediterranean mystery religion (at least the main features) and compare this to two other mystery, mystical, or contemplative traditions (select from two separate regions of the world).
• RS4: The world’s religious traditions conceive of ultimacy in diverse ways. Select three religious movements and in a concise sentence for each tradition, define its view of ultimacy. Say whether you think these diverse conceptions can be harmonized with each other or not.
• RS5: Select three religious traditions that make use of scripture and briefly describe what makes these scriptures sacred for these traditions. For instance, Are these writings sacred because they are revealed or because they are the record of the founder’s teaching.
• RS6: Describe a Mediterranean mystery religion (at least the main features) and compare this to two other mystery, mystical, or contemplative traditions (select from two separate regions of the world).
• RS7: What is involved in a historical-critical analysis of scripture, especially as it relates to the Jewish and Christian Bibles?
• RS8: What are some of the issues and who are some of the persons associated with the grace / free will dispute as it developed in the history of Christianity.
• RS9: Compare and contrast Agape with Eros and Philia.
• RS10: Compare and contrast the approaches of Strauss, Schweitzer, Bultmann, and N.T. Wright to the Gospels and the life of Jesus.
• RS11: What is, in your judgment, the relationship between philosophy and theology in establishing the boundaries of "faith" and reason?
• RS12: Islam claims to be more purely monotheistic than either Judaism or Christianity. On what grounds does it make this claim?
• RS13: What impact did the Enlightenment and its continuing influence have on religion and the study of religion in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries?
• RS14: Explain the place of ritual in religion as ritualizing relates to human rites of passage and to annual liturgical calendars.
• RS15: Discuss Nietzsche's critique of Christianity. Compare his figures or Dionysus or Zarathustra with the figure of Christ.
• RS16: Why are myths so typically important to religions? What sets these stories apart from other types of stories? Compare and contrast the tragic and the Biblical (Adamic myths) or the cosmic (cyclical) renewal and gnostic myths.
• RS17: What are the differences between a scriptural and an oral tradition?
• RS18: Can one believe in God without believing in metaphysics? Why or why not?
• RS19: What was the Arian controversy about, and how was it conceptually resolved in the creed formulated at Nicea?
• RS20: In world religions, are there any contexts in which one can be deeply religious and an atheist at the same time? Explain.
• RS21: In Forgotten Truth, Huston Smith writes about "the primordial tradition" as the point on which all religions agree. Discuss this tradition and evaluate Smith's claims about it from your own point of view.
• RS22: Discuss the notion of North American Pan-Indianism, particularly as a response to the interaction of indigenous cultures and the dominant culture. Be sure to note at least two major examples of Pan-Indianism in the last century. Describe two of these movements in some detail. In your estimation, who would more likely to be more open to these movements, the Lakota or the Zuni? Explain why.
• RS23: Discuss whether you think that Native American artifacts and remains should be preserved in the Smithsonian and other museums as a witness to future Americans of the life of the indigenous peoples of this continent, or whether all such items should be returned to Native Americans to be disposed of in the traditional manner.
• RS24: Visions play an important role in many religious traditions. Visions may arise spontaneously in the visionary, or may be produced by various techniques, such as fasting, self-mutilation, sleep-deprivation, or the ingestion of hallucinogenic substances. Discuss the place of visions in at least two distinct religious traditions, such as the Zuni and the Lakota or Buddhism and Christianity. Are visions genuine encounters with a spiritual dimension of existence or merely hallucinations? Is there a qualitative difference between a vision that comes spontaneously or one that is induced by one of the techniques described above? Are visions generated by psychedelic substances less genuine as spiritual experiences than other kinds of visions?
• RS25: Using examples drawn from at least two traditions, explain the significance of the symbolism of the circle, the center, and the sacred directions in indigenous cultures. Is there a core mystical experience common to all religions or does the character of mysticism vary from tradition to tradition? In answering this question, be sure to refer to the views of at least one essentialist/perennialist theorist and one contextualist/constructivist theorist. Be sure to indicate who you think has the better argument and why.
• RS26: What is the relation of the apophatic and the cataphatic ways in mysticism? Which do you think is the ultimate approach? Be sure to refer to the writings of various mystical writers as you answer this question.
• RS27: A classic Hindu saying is, "The Real is one, though the sages name it differently." Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not? Please use specific illustrations from at least two religious traditions to bolster your argument.
• RS28: Describe in detail the similarities and differences between the four major varieties of Hindu yoga.
• RS29: Nondualism is a central notion in many religions. Explain this concept, giving examples from a number of religious traditions. Choose a specific theme of religions and show how nondualistic and dualistic religions differ on this point.
• RS30: Is there only one true religion? Are all religions one? Are any religions true? Does it make sense to use the word true with respect to religions?
• RS31: Discuss the significance of sacrifice in religion. Describe at least two different kinds of sacrifice from two religious traditions. Is sacrifice essential to religion?
• RS32: Offer a definition of religion and defend it against two other standard definitions of religion.
• RS33: Would an "outsider" or an "insider" approach be more beneficial when studying a religion?
• RS34: A feature of Hindu teaching is the distinction between various types of yoga. Name at least four varieties of yoga, indicate their essential features in a brief sentence for each tradition, and say whether you think the goals of these different forms of yoga converse or diverge.
• RS35: Advaita Vedanta establishes the atman, or self, as the goal of spiritual practice, while Theravada Buddhism asks yogis to discern nonself, or anatman (anatta) as the path to liberative insight. Briefly discuss the difference in approaches between these two Indian traditions. Do you think these teachings are irreconcilable?

• VS1: Explain how a common law system, like that of the United States, relies more on inductive reasoning than civil law systems like that of France.
• VS2: Why is public documentation of legal arguments so critical in the legal system of the United States?
• VS3: Pick three philosophers and explain how they understand the idea of “the feminine.”
• VS4: State W.D. Ross' theory of prima facie duties and give examples of some of these duties. Explain how this theory addresses important problems of Kantian and utilitarian ethics.
• VS5: Distinguish active from passive, and voluntary from non-voluntary euthanasia. State two arguments for euthanasia and two against, carefully describing the circumstances in which euthanasia is being considered.
• VS6: What factors must be present for people to agree on John Rawls' two principles of distributive justice (don't forget the veil of ignorance)? State the two principles, and illustrate how the maximum principle yields a distribution different from the utilitarian.
• VS7: Is morality an outdated, metaphysical concept in postmodern times? Why or why not?
• VS8: What is the relationship between the individual and the community, between desire and the law? Is desire inevitably in conflict with moral behavior?
• VS9: Define the concepts of autonomy, beneficence, and paternalism. Discuss the role these concepts play in questions of medical ethics; develop your ideas in the context of a specific decision scenario.
• VS10: Discuss several of the ethical implications of reproductive technology. Be sure to present pro and contra viewpoints, as well to give voice to feminist concerns.
• VS11: Explain the moral stance that agreement provides the source of morals, and some consequences of that stance (as pointed out by Hobbes). Argue whether or not you believe that morality has such a source.
• VS12: Compare and contrast Plato’s and Aristotle’s conceptions of the connection between the condition of "happiness" and the practice of "virtue." How do they each use these principles to separate right from wrong acts?
• VS13: Using a figure from each of three eras, discuss philosophy's understanding of eros.
• VS14: Compare and contrast the use of moral reasoning in Aristotle and Kant.
• VS15: Explain the different formulations of the Categorical Imperative, defended by Kant. Does 'universalizability' provide a good criterion for moral rules? Argue for your stance on this issue.
• VS16: Explain Mill's moral stance that consequences provide the criteria of moral behavior, and the controversy which such a view answers. Argue whether or not you believe that morality has such a justification. Is Utilitarianism the best answer for how morality is created?
• VS17: Is "mental illness" a disease or a societal value judgment? Defend your answer.
• VS18: Do human beings have free will, or are our actions determined? Are we responsible for our actions if we are not free to choose them?
• VS19: How is technology increasingly challenging our Enlightenment ideals of: (1) Who is a person with moral value and obligation? (2) What is a good quality of life for the moral person? (3) What is the person's place within the social world? (4) What is the person's place within the natural world?

Section 1: Ancient & Medieval Philosophy

• W1: Compare the theories given by Heraclitus and Parmenides. Does either of them provide an acceptable theory? Why or why not?
• W2: Discuss the various definitions of piety offered in the Euthyphro. What are some problems with these definitions?
• W3: Discuss and explain the various charges against Socrates in the Apology. Explain Socrates’s defense.
• W4: What is the nature of love? Explaining the various views presented in the Symposium, explain why you think Diotima's speech does or does not help us to know Eros.
• W5: Explain Plato’s Theory of Forms, and provide at least one argument for them. What might be one criticism of this argument?
• W6: Explain Aristotle's four types of cause (or "explanation"). Show how an analysis of some topic could benefit from such an approach.
• W7: What is the soul, as Aristotle conceives of it, using his first principles and his theory of substance?
• W8: What is the role of eudaimonia in Aristotle's ethics? What are some of the requirements for a eudaimonistic life? Explain why ‘happiness’ is an imprecise translation of ‘eudaimonia'.
• W9: For Aquinas, what are the relationships between eternal law, natural law, divine law, and human law?
• W10: What is Augustine's analysis of the relationship between faith and rationality?
• W11: Explain one of the major Medieval arguments for the existence of God and at least one objection to it.

Section 2: Modern Philosophy

• W12: How does Descartes argue for the existence of the external world? Critique the argument.
• W13: Discuss the role of systematic doubt in Descartes’s philosophy and the role it plays in modern philosophy.
• W14: How does Descartes shape modern philosophy? How does Descartes’s philosophy differ from pre-modern philosophy?
• W15: Discuss the major developments in the empiricist approach to epistemology in Locke, Berkeley and Hume.
• W16: Describe the only two kinds of knowledge according to Hume. Why is it difficult to build a foundation for knowledge using only these two categories of knowledge?
• W17: What are Hume’s criticisms of making knowledge claims based on causality and induction?
• W18: Leibniz believed that the universe was constituted by monads. Why did he believe this?
• W19: Locke argued that the mind is a blank slate from birth. What are the implications of such a claim and what are arguments against it? Discuss his distinctions among primary, secondary and tertiary qualities and how these distinctions influence concepts of perception and reality.
• W20: Between Spinoza and Leibniz's theory of substance, there are intriguing differences. Explain their theories. Does either theory of being offer an acceptable account of what is? Which, if either, offers a better view of what it is that makes us what we are?
• W21: Explain Kant's theory of Space and Time: do they provide his defense of transcendental idealism with adequate justification?
• W22: Kant argues that the consequences of an action do not establish the moral status of that action. Upon examining his argument for this view and the alternative that he proposes, defend your own stance on the source of morality.
• W23: What did Kant mean by the term "synthetic a priori" and what were its consequences for his theory of knowledge?

Section 3: Critiques of Modern Philosophy

• W24: What are Nietzsche's criticisms of the tradition of Western morality and philosophy?
• W25: What critique of philosophy is to be found in the later writings of Ludwig Wittgenstein?
• W26: What is the critique of the Western intellectual tradition made by feminist philosophy?
• W27: Discuss the origins of existential philosophy in Kierkegaard as a reaction against the idealism of Hegel.
• W28: Describe Hegel's concept of God, and why he identifies God as history. What criticism by other nineteenth-century thinkers were made of Hegel's concept?
• W29: By what reasoning did Descartes justify the existence of the world external to consciousness?
• W30: Explain Marx's view of dialectic materialism and offer some criticism.
• W31: Compare and contrast Heidegger's Dasein with Nietzsche's ubermensch (overman).
• W32: What is Nietzsche's criticism of realism?
• W33: What is Edmund Husserl's take on what Descartes is doing when he speaks of the Transcendental Ego, the suspension of the thesis of the natural standpoint, constitutional intentionality, and the epoche?